Human Transit

washington and baltimore: more chances to meet february 7-9

If you're within reach of Washington DC or Baltimore, keep an eye on the Coming Events sidebar in the far right column.  In addition to the National Building Museum lunchtime event on Feb 9, which is ideal for downtown professionals, we now have an evening event in Silver Spring on Feb 7, ideal for northern suburbanites, thanks to the Montgomery County Planning Commission.  

There MAY also be an evening event in downtown Washington of Feb 9 and a evening lunchtime event in Baltimore on Feb 8.  These are tentative, but if those times and places are better for you, watch the Coming Events sidebar.

 

human transit: an investment opportunity!

Just noticed this on my Amazon listing:

• 9 new from $32.16.  3 used from $86.16

Just published, and already over $50 of clean profit on resale!  You should really buy boxes of them, shouldn't you?  ;-)

where is the e-book?

In response to many emails about the not-yet-avaiability of my book in electronic format, the publisher writes in an email:

You won’t be able to get the book from our site for quite a while, but the book is currently in process at Amazon, Apple and Google to be converted into their individual formats for ebooks. Unfortunately, we have little control over that time frame. I hope that Amazon and Google will have their ebook versions available within the next few weeks with Apple to follow. In the meantime, of course, the physical book is available. I hope this helps. 

I hope it does too.  This is outside my control.  Time to rediscover the great smell and texture of dead trees!

new "coming events" sidebar

Upcoming lectures are now in the far right column under my photo -->

Do you have a sponsoring organization that could handle the modest cost of bringing me to your city?  If so, click the email button (also under my photo) and let's talk!

australia / new zealand readers!

My book may well be out in Australia/NZ even before it comes out in North America.  NewSouth Books, the book's Australia/NZ distributor, plans to print books in Sydney instead of waiting for them to make the long flight.  This saves carbon emissions while getting the books out faster, probably by mid-December at the latest.  They'll also be offering a 20% discount for Aus/NZ customers who order off their site.  You can pre-order now.  (It encourages them to print more!)

Here's New South's flyer promoting the book, which you're welcome to print, share with friends, and leave modestly lying about:  Download Human Transit flyer(2).

Back to usual programming soon!  (Finger is better, thanks.)

 

we have a date: "december 5 or so"

I just signed off on the very, very last proofs of the book.  Island Press's copyeditor has advised me to expect books out by "about Dec 5 or so."

Have you read the introduction and table of contents?  If not, please have a look now.  I hope it will be clear that the book is unique in trying to make transit choices clear to the interested general reader, including elected officials, advocates, and professionals in related fields.

I will be based in Portland throughout Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, but also have trips planned in that range to Auckland NZ, eastern Australia, Washington DC, Seattle, and possibly South Florida.  Other trips are possible depending on honoraria etc.  I'm obviously keen for opportunities to do public lectures sponsored by reasonably prominent organizations or institutions.  If you know one, please let them know.

And if you've already decided you're looking forward to reading it, why not preorder?  It's also on Amazon, and quite possibly your favorite book website.

 

strategic minds vs physical objects

Sunday I sliced off the very tip of my right index finger while searching for a pair of scissors in the suitcase.  The doctor called it a "guillotine wound." 

As a touch typist, I've been contemplating topics that might be discussed without using the letters J, H, M, N, U, and Y, but the more likely outcome is a week or two of hiatus.  Send brilliant guest posts!

not a hiatus but ...

... but there are moments in the life of a consultant when project needs spill over and consume all of your time, even threatening sleep.  I may not post again until the weekend, but I am still here.  High-quality guest posts, or recommended cross-posts, are welcome!  

in seattle next 3 days ...

... but probably not with much spare time for non-work, non-marketing items.  I'm the lunchtime speaker on Monday at the APTA Multimodal Operations Planning Workshop, and will be at the conference through Wednesday.  It's always a good source of planning stories so I expect to emerge with some material, though maybe not time to write about it.

This is a very busy time for me between the 1.5 jobs and the book, so remember, we welcome quality guest posts -- or even just stories from a thoughtful "correspondent," like this guy, that I can publish with just a little commentary. 

network design course: the next step

Since I began offering my short course in network design, I've gotten many emails asking whether I'm going to do it again, and in what cities. The answer is that each session of the course needs a local sponsor, and as soon as I hear from one, I'm keen to help make it happen.

To help that process along, I now have a page advertising the course. Please mention it to any organizations that you think should offer it!